Sources of Racial-Ethnic Socialization Messages Across Latine Adolescents’ Egocentric Social Networks

Racial-ethnic discrimination is ubiquitous among Latine adolescents and is a major risk factor for mental health problems. Racial-ethnic socialization (RES)—the transmission of messages about race and racism—is protective for Latine adolescents. Yet, the RES literature primarily focuses on parents as RES agents. Using a novel social network approach, this pilot feasibility study aimed to identify other sources of RES. Forty-four Latine adolescents (50.0% male; M age = 14.0; SD = 1.90; range = 10–17) completed a social network interview. Participants named up to 20 important people in their life (i.e., alters) and reported the content of RES messages provided by each alter. Adolescents then completed a brief survey assessing the acceptability of the social network interview. Participants named an average of 10.6 alters ( SD = 4.20; range = 4–20). Alters from the immediate family, extended family, peer, school, and community networks provided RES messages. Furthermore, most participants (88.6%) found the interview easy to complete, and a few offered suggestions for improvement. This exploratory study outlines an innovative approach to study the complexities of RES. The data provide a nuanced understanding of the multiple, simultaneous sources of RES in this population and present opportunities to develop strengths-based RES interventions.